Adventure Reborn
by TheOmegaMan
Summary: "In those days, there were heroes. Heroes who conquered giants and moved mountains."


**And so it begins...**

"What did we do to deserve this?"

"Exist, Tai. Exist."

His sentiments exactly. Out of all the places two, eighteen-year-old men could end up during their vacation, they landed the worst - camp in the middle of nowhere. Something that started as a joke to ease their parents' minds turned into a literal nightmare. So now, instead of having fun and going out with all of their high-school friends, he and Izzy sat on top of a tree branch and watched the sun set.

Yes, watch the sun set.

"I blame you," he said, leaning back against the tree trunk.

"I know...I've apologized enough, though."

"No. No you haven't."

He thought about kicking Izzy to the ground and taking a nap on this perfect little perch. But branches snapping below distracted him from that line of thought. Through half-lidded eyes he looked at the individual peering back at him. Her arms were crossed, and her hips were cocked. The typical feminine stance.

More importantly, what was _she _doing here?

"Leave me alone, would you?" he asked, not expecting an answer back. In fact he rolled over to force that impression. "Izzy, how does this get worse? Please, tell me."

"Cataclysmic explosions that make us run for our lives?"

"The least you could do i-"

At this point, Tai clamped his hands over his ears, drowning out Mimi. Izzy would distract her, perks in having a best friend in love with a brainless bitch. A tale as old as time...according to something or another. He wondered what Izzy saw in the girl. A dude as smart as Izzy deserved someone he could carry a conversation with for more than ten minutes.

When he felt a tap on his leg, he knew that Izzy had scared her away for the time being. He rolled onto his back and frowned. Izzy's cheeks had become bright red. Great. He closed his eyes, which automatically made him feel better.

"Why is she here?"

"Something about parents renovating...I could smell her shampoo all the way from up here," Izzy said. "She smells like cherry blossoms."

"Oh god, I think I need to hurl."

He felt the branch shift. "When did you start judging all the time? I thought you were better than that."

"What do you mean?" No response. After a couple of moments of silence, Tai peeked open an eye to see that Izzy had jumped and disappeared. Damn it. "Oh, come on! You can't blame me for thinking that! It's Mimi!"

Gritting his teeth, he sat up and punched the bark with minimal force. Izzy took all the enjoyment out of making fun of Mimi if he was going to act like this. But that's how guys in love acted. Defensive about their prospective women and blah blah blah. He jumped off and brushed the dirt from his clothes.

Curfew was coming up, and he needed to make his way back to the cabin. Stuffing his hands in his pocket, Tai walked along the trail back to the main campsite. He heard the occasional chatter by the other camp-goers. Looked like there quite a few people from his high school. They knew Mimi. If they were women, they were jealous for having all of their attention stolen, and if they were men, they felt blessed...for well, Mimi.

He guessed he shouldn't be too hard on Izzy. Deep down, the guy was no different than an ordinary, red-blooded male - simply lacked normal social presence. Tai remembered Izzy back in their middle-school careers. His peers weren't so sympathetic about an adolescent genius who showed them up in every class. Lots of bullying occurred between classes. Tai ended up having to play the role of protector, not that he didn't like it, of course. Still, things could have turned out much worse. Izzy could have never left his awkward shell and given up on women altogether.

Tai huffed, kicking a rock off the trail and into the boot of another individual. Mimi looked pathetic. Hunched over. Exaggerated pout. Hands cradling her head. He debated leaving, not saying a single word. He could head back to the cabin, apologize to Izzy, and sleep. But the moment he felt the pit in his stomach, his better judgment took him.

She looked...nice at the very least. Pink camisole and a pink skirt that accentuated her legs.

"Snake-skin boots and cowboy hat are a little much for camp, don't you think?" He asked.

Repeating the question in his head, he jammed his palm into his forehead. Small-talk was definitely not his forte.

"You don't have to play nice," she said. "I'm leaving you alone. I promise."

"Why do you think I said that, Mimi?"

Her eyes met his. They looked watery, but Tai thought it could be the reflection of the light as well. "Because I treat you like shit."

"It's not like I said it randomly," he continued. "You're a horrible person when you're at school. I don't know if it's the people or the popularity...but it's the truth. You treat me like shit. And a lot of other people too."

"I know...I'm sorry. I want to be a better person, I do."

Something seemed off. Four years of school with her and not once had Mimi ever shown signs of remorse. Then again...the question remained - why was a girl with options after options stuck in a mediocre camp? Another answer for another time, he supposed.

Tai rolled his eyes. He was going to regret what he was about to do.

"Just try to be nicer, okay?" Tai asked, holding out the olive branch.

Then her gentle features snapped. The solemn expression in her eyes a few seconds ago were gone, replaced by fury. She stood up and slammed a hand into Tai's cheek.

"You're an idiot," she said. "You honestly think that I give a shit about being a better person? Stop being a dumbass, Kamiya. I played along because I could."

Tai didn't move, flabbergasted. He knew he would regret being nice...just not like this.

With his earlier convictions about Mimi being a bitch strengthened, Tai let the poor excuse for a human being walk away without a word or even a gesture of defense. It'd be a waste of breath. So instead, Tai wandered to the lake near their cabin. Intentions of apologizing to Izzy vanished. All accounts justified his judgmental thoughts. If by magic Izzy got to date Mimi, she would chew him up and spit him out.

She would break his heart. And he couldn't allow that to the best of his ability.

When he came to the shore of the lake, he stepped onto the dock and took a seat at its edge. The water didn't come high enough, so he let his feet dangle mere inches above the calm surface. Dragonflies skimmed the surface, causing ripples from time to time but never really upsetting the water's total composure. Surreal almost.

He wanted Kari to be here. She liked natural things - part of the reason he tried to contain the amount of complaining that came out of his mouth. He was...the lucky one. Got to experience it all. Not like her. No...she would be lucky to experience anything ever again.

How could his parents send him out here at a time like this? Were they-

A faint, green light in the center of the lake derailed his thought process. He squinted, trying to determine if it was a trick of his eyes or the light or if there really was a green light. He got up and started walking around, still not quite sure. But when the light intensified, Tai seized up. They had been here for a week; he came to the lake every other night. Not once had this happened.

Then the lake grew an ebb. Waves crashed and the entire body glowed brighter. Tai took a step back, swallowing and preparing for the worst. The wind picked up. Became a gust. Forced his footing. Crashed him into the raging whirlpool swallowing everything. He clawed at the mud and screamed. Someone needed to help him before he drowned.

His eyes widened at the sound of popping wood . The dock turned into splintered debris and came towards him at the rate of a freight train. And in the next moment, Tai saw darkness.


End file.
